The “Word of the cross”, or the “message of the cross”, is the powerful New Covenant gospel that preaches freedom from sin by taking up your cross and following Jesus daily, after having received forgiveness through Jesus’ death on the cross on Calvary. To take up your cross does not mean taking up a physical cross, like the one on Calvary, but it means to say no to the sinful thoughts and desires that come up in you and thus “crucifying” them so that they don’t have any power anymore to control us. (1 Corinthians 1:18; Luke 9:23.)